PYO.

Some of you town dwellers may think this is a Masonic code or something from one of Dan Brown's trashy novels, but it hides a much deeper and exotic secret. PYO is a sign you often see in the countryside on highways and byways. At the end of tortuous road there was an orchard with many people disembarking from cars on their way to PYO (Pick Your Own) apples. I was doing my own thing picking blackberries from the hedges, and getting for my labour of love - inky fingers. When the kids were younger we would go strawberry and raspberry PYO. Its one of the most enjoyable experiences there ever can be. Many families from East London would come down to Kent each year at harvest time to pick the hops. That has all changed now they come from Eastern Europe. When I worked on a Kibbutz in the Negev I picked many thousands of avocados and oranges. At my last Kibbutz, En Gedi on the Dead Sea, dates were our harvest. Getting them was a painful job as you had to climb the trees. Although all agricultural work is pretty back breaking it can be enjoyable. However as we see in China the city offers more money, fun and excitement and acts as a magnet to many from the countryside. Nevertheless PYO has a deep place in my heart.